1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a bumper cover fixing bracket of a vehicle, and more particularly, to a bumper cover fixing bracket of a vehicle, which engages a fender panel and a bumper cover so as to secure stiffness.
2. Description of Related Art
In general, a vehicle has front and rear bumpers mounted at the front and rear sides of a vehicle body. When the vehicle collides with another vehicle or a fixed object, the front and rear bumpers absorb the impact to secure the safety of passengers and to minimize a deformation of the vehicle body.
The front bumper includes a bumper beam formed therein, a stay connecting the bumper beam to the vehicle body, an energy absorber disposed at the front side of the bumper beam so as to absorb an impact, and a bumper cover covering the bumper beam and the energy absorber.
The bumper cover has both ends mounted on the fender panel, and a fixing bracket 100 is interposed therebetween to engage and fix the bumper cover and the fender panel.
As illustrated in FIG. 1, the fixing bracket 100 includes a supporting member 101 attached to a wheel house front member 110 and a fastening member 103 attached to a side surface of the supporting member 101. The bumper cover and the fender panel are mounted on the fastening member 103.
The supporting member 101 of the fixing bracket 100 is formed to support a load in an X-axis direction, that is, in a longitudinal direction of the vehicle body.
The above-described supporting member 101 is welded and coupled to the wheel house front member 110 formed in an L-shape at an upper member 120.
The supporting member 101 is made of a thick tube member to secure stiffness thereof, and a separate reinforcement member 130 capable of securing the stiffness of the vehicle body is mounted on an inner surface of the supporting member 101 so as to join the supporting member 101.
Furthermore, the fastening member 103 formed in a triangle shape has one side attached to the side surface of the supporting member 101.
The fender panel and the bumper cover are mounted at one side and the other side of the fastening member 103, respectively.
According to the recent design specification, a variety of fixing brackets with a narrow engine room have been launched on the market. In the fixing brackets, a large head lamp is attached at a front side surface of the vehicle body so as to reduce protrusion of the upper member 120, a distance between the bumper cover and the upper member 120 at the side surface of the vehicle body is increased, and the wheel house front member 110 is formed in an oblique direction at the upper member 120.
Thus, the fixing bracket 100 having the above-described structure has difficulties in dealing with the increased distance between the upper member 120 and the bumper cover and inserting a separate reinforcement member 130 capable of securing stiffness into the inner surface because the fixing bracket 100 has a narrow engine room. Therefore, the stiffness of the fixing bracket 100 supporting the bumper cover and the fender panel inevitably decreases.
The information disclosed in this Background of the Invention section is only for enhancement of understanding of the general background of the invention and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art already known to a person skilled in the art.